Regression
by TStabler
Summary: Sometimes in life, no matter how hard we try to move forward, to grow, certain parts of our past, whether it be people, places, or memories, always cling to us and pull us back, make us regress. Is it possible to confront our pasts without regression? Is it feasible to deal with what's behind in order to move on? E/O, rated STRONG M for future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: A new beginning...short, to set up the story.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and all related characters. TStabler owns the following story.**

"Just relax," Olivia told the young woman next to her in the interrogation room. "Tell them the truth, they're not here to hurt you, they're here to..."

"Help me," the young girl whispered. "I know." She looked up at Olivia with sad, scared eyes, her body was visibly trembling. "How much trouble am I in?"

Olivia offered a smile. "None," she promised the girl. "You were only protecting yourself. Your mother woke up and pressed charges, that's the only reason you even have to do this. It's all going to be okay."

The girl nodded, then shot her eyes toward the opening door. She watched a tall man in a suit walk into the room, pull out the chair with a metallic screech, and sit across from her.

"Madison," he began, "Before we start, I want to tell you that your mother is going to be okay. She's a little disoriented, possible concussion, but she's just fine." He looked at her, then, his eyes almost searching hers. "And according to the doctor, she's beyond drunk, so we know you weren't lying to us. Charges have been dropped. "

The girl heaved a relieved sigh. "So...what do you want from me now?"

"You're not the bad guy here, sweetheart," the detective told her. He slid a yellow notebook and pen over to her and said, "We need a written statement, so that we can either get your mother the help she needs so this never happens again..." he paused, and his eyes found Olivia's. "Or we make sure she can't hurt you anymore, by...um..."

"You're gonna put her in jail," Madison understood. "Or rehab?" She scoffed. "Do you know how many times she's been in and out of programs? She comes home fine and happy for two days, then she drinks herself stupid and tries to kill me, so whatever you think you're gonna change..."

"Trust me," Olivia interrupted. "This ends tonight, you just need to give us the whole story. Start to finish."

Madison laughed bitterly. "This is gonna take a while." She picked up the pen, started writing, and Olivia nodded at the detective. "I will be right back. You got this for a minute?"

"Sure," the detective said, then leaned back and folded his arms, watching the girl scribble across the notebook as Olivia got up and walked out of the room. She ran her hands through her hair and took a deep breath, brushing off the aggravation she'd been feeling all night.

"You okay?" a low voice asked her.

She looked up and forced a smile. "Aren't I always?"

"Liv," the man chided, his two strong arms looping around her, "You don't have to..."

"I'm fine, El," she protested, returning his hug. "Cases like this just..."

"I know, baby," he whispered to her. He closed his eyes and placed a soft kiss to her forehead. "You, uh...you got a phone call while you were in there." He pulled away from her, reached into his pocket, and handed her cell phone to her. "I didn't pick it up, but the...the number was..."

"Cragen?" she questioned, her eyebrows knitting together. "What the hell does he want? After what happened, I told him I didn't want anything..."

Elliot gripped her shoulders and looked into her eyes, a half-smirk on his face as he tried to hide a laugh. "You didn't really think they'd let you go that easily, did you? Shit, I had to ignore calls from that man for over a month, voicemails begging me to come back, so I'm not surprised..." he stopped, watching her trace the screen with a finger. "You don't have to call back."

"What if it's not that? What if it...what if they need me for something else?" She looked at him, fear, anger, hope, pain, all swirling in her eyes.

He smiled at her and took her cell phone back. "I'll call him," he told her. He gave her a quick kiss, ran his hand down her arm and tangled his fingers with hers. "I love you," he said softly.

She gave him a relaxed smile as her eyes closed and her forehead dropped to his. "I love you, too, El." She looked up again. "You were right," she said. "It still feels weird on the other side of the table."

He chuckled and brushed the hair out of her eyes. "You're doing what you love, baby, and you're incredible at it." He let go of her hand and gave her ass a playful swat. "And God damn, you're the hottest advocacy attorney in the entire world."

She rolled her eyes and reached for the doorknob to head back into the interrogation room. "And you're the hottest Chief of Detectives this city's ever seen."

"And we still make a great team. We always will," he winked at her. He watched her walk back into the room, stared at her from behind the glass for a moment, then walked out into the squad room of the Twenty-Third Precinct's Special Victims division, nodding at several detectives and the unit's captain on his way out. He pointed at the man. "You call me when she's done, got it?"

"You got it, Chief," the captain said, then went back to his conversation.

Once he was out of the room, in the hallway, Elliot looked down at Olivia's cell phone. "Son of a bitch," he muttered, dialing a number he thought he'd never have to use again. He waited. When someone picked up, he snapped. "No, it's me. She's in with a vic...client. She already told you, over a year ago, that it was a final decision, and she's happy with her...what?"

He swallowed hard and closed his eyes, a hand brushing over his unshaven face. "I'll tell her. Just...fax it to my office, she'll get it, and she'll be down there in the morning." He cleared his throat, never having thought that so much emotion would build up by just talking to the man who was once like a father to him. "And, uh, your review is coming up. Make sure I have every file from...yeah, I know you know." He took a breath. "Bye, Captain Cragen."

Elliot ended the call with more weight on his shoulders and his heart than he felt he'd ever had. He took another deep breath, turned on his heels, and headed back into the squad room he'd just left, walking straight for the rear interrogation room.

Just when he thought they could leave the past behind and work on their future together, a curveball hit him right in the chest. One he knew Olivia wouldn't like, but wouldn't be able to avoid. In the morning, they'd have to deal with the demons they'd escaped, they'd have to see faces of people that let them down, let them go.

They'd have to go back to the One-Six, to Cragen, to their own SVU.

They'd have to go back...and he wasn't sure if it was right. To him, it might be the biggest mistake they'd ever make.

**A/N: Why? What happened? How will the unit react to seeing them again, and when they get an even bigger surprise, certain people just can't handle it. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: The setup**

**A/N/2: Sorry for the confusion: Nathan is the name of Elliot and Olivia's baby boy. :)**

Once Elliot ran back into the bullpen, though, he thought better of it. He turned around again, ignoring the confused looks he was now getting, and he walked out. He took the stairs two at a time, then made his way back down to his own building, his own office.

He stopped for coffee, downing it in three huge sips, then greeted all of his staff and colleagues as he walked through the glass doors and into his office. He took off his jacket and dropped it on a chair, eyeing the blinking fax machine to his right. He pushed the button, grabbed the pages as they printed, and sat in his leather chair, swiveled around to face the back wall.

In his hands, he held the report Cragen had sent over. His eyes scanned the papers for what seemed like the hundredth time. He sighed and blinked, the gears turning in his head as he wondered if there was more to it, if Cragen had some ulterior motive behind sending Olivia such a request.

There was a knock on his door, then, and he turned in his chair. Before he could tell whoever it was to go away, the door swung open.

"Surprise," Olivia said with a smile. She took in the way he looked more exhausted than he had an hour ago, his normally bright eyes dim. He looked angry. "You're not happy to see me," she surmised, plopping into a chair in front of his desk.

"I'm always happy to see you." He offered her a slightly apologetic smile, then tossed the faxed papers onto his desk in her direction. "I'm not happy to see that, though."

She narrowed her eyes and picked up the stapled packet. "This is what he wanted me for?" she asked, reading. "This isn't…"

"Police report came with it," Elliot interrupted. "It's a legitimate claim, Liv. It's within your realm of expertise; they have every right to request you on this."

"There are a thousand other advocacy…" she stopped, seeing the look he was giving her. "This is bullshit, El, and you know it. This is Cragen's half-assed attempt at trying to get me back there so he can either apologize or make me feel guilty for leaving the unit."

"He knows better," Elliot said with a smugness that made her chuckle. "Baby, he knows you don't feel guilty about the choices you make, especially…this one. He knows why you had to leave, and he knows how much better you are for it. How much better _we_ are for it."

Olivia stood up, moved over to him, and perched on the edge of his desk. "We are pretty amazing, huh?"

"Always have been," he smirked, running his hands up from her ankles to her thighs. "Always will be. You're happier, I'm happier, we have the best family in the world, no bullshit from Fin or that little dipshit you used to work with…"

"Nick," Olivia said, amusement in her eyes and voice at his suppressed jealousy.

"Whatever," Elliot returned, his gaze following the trail his fingers were making up her body. "He's smart, baby. He wants the best on this because somewhere deep inside him he knows this kid is innocent, and he knows you won't quit until you prove that."

She let out a soft moan, her head dropping back. "You'll stop that if you know what's good for you," she warned him.

He laughed and shook his head. "I know exactly what's good for me, and stopping…that would be bad," he got out of his chair, gripping her upper thigh with his right hand, her hip with his left, and he leaned over to kiss her, hard.

It knocked the wind out of both of them, the fire filling the air around them fast, her nails clawing at his arms as they flexed and tightened around her. Her teeth nipped at his lips, the hot breath from his low growls hit the skin of her chin and neck. He was ready to rip off the pants beneath his fingers, but the shrill ringing of his phone broke them apart before things could get that far.

"Fuck," he hissed, backing away from her just enough to dig into his pocket for his phone.

She heaved as she tried to catch her breath. "Almost, yeah," she joked, combing her fingers through her hair. She shook off the tremors and shivers he'd just sent coursing through her, hopping down off of his desk and heading for the door.

He held up a finger at her, warning her, silently forbidding her to leave. "Yeah," he said into the phone. "No, she'll be there. Only because it's a kid that needs her help, she's not doing you any favors. Ya know what? I'll stop by tomorrow and pick up your files, too, this way you see both of us, a reminder how fully fucked up…"

"Elliot!" Olivia scolded him from across the room.

He stopped mid-rant, looked at her, and took a deep breath. "No, you know damn well personal feelings won't interfere with your review. Just know that I'm gonna be thorough, especially on this one." He closed his eyes as the voice on the other end of the cell, Captain Cragen, spoke for a moment. "Me, too," Elliot sighed, then he hung up the phone without a goodbye.

"What the hell was that about?" Olivia asked, her arms crossed, her arousal turned to frustration.

Elliot shoved his cell phone back into his pocket, then pulled hers out of it. He slapped it into her open palm and grabbed his jacket. "Nothing," he spat.

"That was a whole lot of nothing," she argued, raising an eyebrow. She stood in front of the doorknob. "El," she prodded.

He ran a hand down his face and cleared his throat. "He wants you there at six in the morning, he doesn't want to book the kid until you talk to him. Which means you have to take…"

"Nathan," she said softly, nodding. "I guess…it's about time Munch got to see him, right?"

Elliot nodded, kissed her forehead, and said, "Just keep him the hell away from Fin. He doesn't deserve…after what…how could he just…"

"People change, El," she whispered, reaching up to cup his face. "Not you, not me, but some people…they don't know how to handle jealousy, they hold grudges, they let things fester, and when you weren't there for him to lash out at, he used me. I'm not really that upset, you shouldn't be."

He let his forehead drop to hers. He nodded, letting his body relax against hers. "He was...the whole time…"

"I know what he was," she stopped him, then kissed him softly. "Can we go home now? I'd like to see my kids sometime tonight."

He laughed and grabbed her hand, pulled her away from the door, and with his jacket slung over his arm, he opened the door and led her out, through the administrative offices, toward the elevator, heading home.

It was a quiet drive across town. He never let go of her hand, every once in a while lifting it to his lips to kiss her knuckles. They shared smiles, sweet looks, and a kiss at every red light, but no words. They didn't need them.

Elliot pulled the car into the driveway, turned the key, and dropped his hands to his knees. "You don't regret leaving, do you?"

"If I had stayed," she looked at him, "We wouldn't be here, now, would we?"

"Yeah," he said with a firm nod. "Liv, no matter what happened…or didn't happen…this was always where we'd end up."

She chuckled and said, "I meant, I'd still be at work, on some case or another, fighting with Fin, dealing with sleep deprivation, missing the most important moments of our son's life. So no, actually, I don't regret leaving. Do I miss the job? Yeah, but I don't miss the hours, I don't miss being away from you, away from the kids. And after what happened, I really don't miss the people, with the exception of Munch."

"You know," he told her, resting his hand on the door handle, "Eventually, you're gonna have to give me a statement, Liv. Details, what went down, how you found out. I have a deadline on this, and I can't keep sweeping it under the rug because I don't want to put your ass in a sling."

She nodded and squinted, then said, "After this. Okay? Let me get through having to work with them, and then I'll tell you everything I know. And you do what you have to do."

"I don't plan on saving anyone's ass," he said, finally opening the door to get out of the car. "If they had anything to do with Porter poking his nose around about Simon and nearly costing you your badge, if I find out Fin had any part of what Brady did to you, so help me God, they will pay for it."

She got out of the passenger side, then met him near the front steps. "I know," she said. "Okay, work stays here. We go in there and it nothing but rainbows and unicorns."

"And dirty diapers, bottles, screaming, crying," he complained, but then he smiled. "Paradise."

"Heaven," she sighed, looping an arm around his back as he opened the front door. Once it was open, Maureen, Elliot's oldest daughter, came rushing at them.

"Thank God," she moaned. "I swear, there is no better birth control than babysitting a three month old. He's changed, fed, and asleep, and I am leaving before he wakes up. You two can deal with your own child tonight." She kissed her father and Olivia on their cheeks, then bolted out the door.

Olivia looked over to where Dickie was standing, in the kitchen doorway. "Did we miss something?"

"Nate peed in her mouth," Dickie chortled. "It was great! You have to see the look on her face! Look," he pulled his phone out of his back pocket. "I got it on video, and it's going online in about five minutes." He handed the cell phone to his father.

Elliot glanced down, and couldn't help but laugh as his horrified daughter squealed and flailed her arms, but then he stared at Dickie. "If this goes online, guess who gets his car taken away for the entire month?"

"Dad! Come on!" Dickie griped. "It's classic! Do you have any idea how many hits that would get? I'd be a legend!"

"A legend without a car," Olivia told him, grabbing the phone from Elliot and handing it back to Dickie. "Delete it. Now."

Dickie rolled his eyes as he sulked up the stairs. "It sucks that you two are cops, ya know that?"

Olivia hollered after him, "I'm a lawyer, thank you!"

Elliot laughed and pulled Olivia closer to him. "You're an amazing mother," he said, kissing her. "I always said you would be, and you are."

"Uh, nice try," she said, peeling herself away from him. She headed for the nursery, talking to him as she walked. "Your kids were already raised, so we won't know if I'm a good mother at all until this little guy starts talking." She lifted the sleeping baby out of his crib and into her arms.

Elliot's heart melted at the sight of her holding their son. "Liv," he whispered. "You're an incredible mother, to my kids, to our son, to the kids we're gonna have. Baby, you are." He brushed the bangs out of her eyes and kissed her forehead as his fingertips stroked down her right cheek. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she said, nestling into his embrace and snuggling the baby between them. They stayed there for a long beat, both staring down at him. "He's perfect, isn't he?"

"He's half you and half me," he told her with a nod. "Damn right, he's perfect. There's no way he couldn't be." He kissed the top of Olivia's head, then bent lower to kiss Nathan's forehead. With one arm around Olivia and the other helping to cradle the tiny boy, they swayed together, he hummed a soft song as he moved his wife and son, and for a moment, nothing else mattered.

For a moment, he'd forgotten that in the morning his wife would walk back into the cold world she'd left behind. His infant son would meet people who, a year ago, would have been his family. He looked from his sleeping son to Olivia, and that final night played again in his mind.

She'd burst into the house, panic stricken. Her face was a shade of white he'd never seen before, her fists had been balled tighter than ever, and there'd been tears welling up in her eyes that she'd refused to let fall. He'd tried everything to calm her down, and when she'd finally built up the strength to explain what she'd seen, she'd crumpled in his arms, broken in his hands.

Dirty cops existed, he knew that. And he was no stranger to lying or covering for a colleague, he'd done it a thousand times when she was his partner, but this was a series of unforgivable actions that had been glossed over, ignored, even put into place by the same man who once berated him for covering up and hiding things that were far less severe.

Now, he knew why. The woman he'd been protecting, covering for, was the same woman someone else had been trying to take down. Take out.

It wouldn't have been so bad, if it was a few careless mistakes, if it hadn't been intentional harm. It had gone deeper than just a few missing signatures, though, and the team started to turn on one another when the truth came out. Olivia's unwillingness to just "let it go" didn't sit well with Fin, and Munch's hours were cut because he, too, was "a nosy motherfucker." Cragen had started to desk Olivia on major cases, he'd hoped it would keep her safe, keep people from finding ways and excuses to get her in trouble.

When she'd told them all she was pregnant, though, it grew unbearable. Fin began snapping at her, hateful words about her, the child, its father. He'd started rumors about when and how her relationship started, about whom the father really was, a lot of lying and betrayal.

Cragen benched her for good, "for her own benefit" he'd told her, and every time she'd thought about going to Tucker and telling him what she'd uncovered, threats had come right back to her. "Does Tucker know who the father is? That's gonna look bad, ya know, I'd call it sleeping with the Chief of D's to get yourself out of trouble."

That's when she'd decided it wasn't home anymore, that people had changed and her family had fallen apart. She'd resigned early in the morning, written a strongly worded letter to Ed Tucker, and then rushed home and told Elliot everything, but she'd refused to issue an official statement until her severance package and security bundle were nestled safely in a high-priority joint account, until she knew they couldn't touch her.

It had been a little over a year since then. They had a healthy three month old baby boy, a houseful of older kids, a family. They were intent on forgetting about the past, looking toward the future, moving on with their lives. They were blissfully happy. But now it felt like they'd be going backward. "You don't have to do it," he whispered to her, holding her much closer and tighter than he realized. "You don't have to take this case."

"Yeah, I do," she said, nodding. She sighed and tugged their son out of his arms, turned, and laid him gently back into his crib. She bundled him in the blue blanket Bernie made for him, and she kissed his tiny nose. "Cragen begged, and he never begs. I can do my job, be objective, I won't let Fin get to…"

"I'm filing your report," he said suddenly. "When I put in Cragen's review." He scratched his head and bit his lip. "So in the next couple of days, we, uh, we need to really talk. With Tucker."

Pain flashed in her eyes as she moved closer to him. "What about Fin?"

Elliot sighed. "If he wants a chance at avoiding heavy jail time, he'll tell Tucker everything, he'll talk to me, and we'll get to the bottom of…"

"What if he doesn't?" She curled her fingers around the collar of his shirt, looked into his eyes, and she blinked. "El, this goes all the way back to Richard White! Brady, Spevak, Rook, do you know how many of our cases are going under the microscope because of this? How many convictions we could lose because of him and his ego?"

"Baby," he gripped her shoulders, "I promise you, that's not gonna happen. You and I both know no one else had their hands in our cases. He may have tampered with the suspects, helped them do what they did to you, to me, but the verdicts are clean. I'm gonna be looking through cases Fin worked solo, too, and the ones he wormed his way into. If the ADA on all of them is the same person, then we at least have a place to start."

She took a deep breath and nodded. "Who's gonna take over for Cragen, if it gets that far? He can't be there while you figure it all out, his ass is on the line here, too, isn't it? You can't ask Munch to go through that again, not like this. It would kill him."

He narrowed his eyes, he looked at her, and pulled her toward the bed. "If it comes down to it," he said, "Me."

**A/N: Who is the kid Olivia's called into help? Why? What does Cragen have to say for himself? What about Fin? And how does the squad react to baby Nathan? A bittersweet reunion, and answers to questions, next.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: The Confrontation**

Olivia walked through the halls of the sixteenth precinct, her eyes taking in every poster on the walls, the face of every person she passed. She nodded at some, smiled warmly at others, stopped for brief hugs with a select few. Her fear that she'd miss it more with every step was growing, making her chest tighten. She lifted the baby carrier up higher on her arm, thankful that Nathan was still sleeping.

She looked down at him for a moment, remembering how Elliot had woken with her at four in the morning to feed and change the tiny boy while she went for a run. She brushed the hair out of his face, smiling, thanking whatever higher power had finally given her that part of Elliot, and the little miracle she was staring down at.

"Olivia?"

Her head snapped up at the sound of her name being called, her moment of peace abruptly interrupted. "Nick," she nodded. "Hi."

"Hi?" Nick scoffed. "That's what you give me after eleven months?"

Olivia narrowed her eyes. "Like you picked up the phone? Don't give me grief about not talking to any of you. The only person who even bothered to come see me after I had the baby was Munch."

Nick softened. "Right," he sighed. "Sorry. Uh…this is…this is him? What's his name?"

"Nathan," Olivia said, her smile returning at the very mention of her son.

Nick tilted his head. "He has your nose, your mouth, but really…he kind of looks like…"

"His father," she interrupted, giving him a knowing look. "He looks like his father. He even has beautiful blue eyes that…" she cleared her throat. "Anyway, you know why I'm here. Where's the boy?"

Nick crooked a finger at her, then turned, leading her into the squad room that was once her home. "He's in with Fin now, but Cragen…he won't stop pushing self defense, this kid is the victim here, and no one wants to take the case."

"So you called me?" Olivia sauntered over to her old desk, noticing it was still empty and bare, and she set the baby carrier down on the slick metal surface. She let the diaper bag fall off her arm, too, then pushed back the carrier's visor, tugged down the soft, blue blanket, and made sure Nathan was comfortable. "Huh?"

Nick smiled at her, loving the way motherhood looked on her. "You're the best, Benson. You're a fighter, and you haven't lost a single case."

"Lemme guess," she said, folding her arms. "No one you usually consult wants to take a chance on the case because he was the victim, now he's the perp, and his actions could be viewed as premeditated revenge."

"Pretty much," Nick said with a nod. "You read the file?"

She sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Yeah, I read it. His own mother…" she paused, then looked up at Nick. She took a breath and said, "You know, before…I hated every one of them for hurting their own children, for harming the little lives that they created, the hearts and souls they were responsible for, they were blessed with, because they couldn't see how lucky they were." She bit her lower lip a bit, remembering. "I remember how it felt to want...something so badly, something they were just...throwing away. But now…I'm a mother, and I still…I can't…if anyone ever even thinks about hurting my children, I will…"

"Look what the cat dragged in," Fin cut her off, walking out of the interrogation room. "Couldn't stay away could ya, Benson?"

Olivia gave him a hard look. "I'm not here to ask for my job…"

"And I'm guessin' that's the reason you quit on us?" he pointed to Nathan, again stopping her words. "Man, if he ain't the spittin' image of Stabler."

Olivia pressed her lips together and took a deep, calming breath. "He is," she said with a curt nod. "Little boys tend to look their fathers."

Fin looked from the baby to Olivia. "Poor kid," he shrugged, then breezed past her. "Your client is in with Cragen. You can go back in a minute, just give him time to stop cryin' those crocodile tears, tryin' to get us to take pity on him."

"Fin, you know he's not guilty of anything," she told him, taking a step toward him. "I can't believe you're ready to string up a fourteen year old for murder when you know damn well…"

"If you were still on the other side," Fin barked, intruding, "You'd be doin' the same damn thing." He tilted his head, pointed a finger at her, and lowered his voice. "You changed when Stabler left, you know you did. You never bounced back from that, you sank deeper and deeper into this hole, you couldn't handle the job anymore, and now you're defendin' the little piss ants you used to put away."

"I'm defending the victims!" she yelled back. "And you're damn right, I never bounced back, because he left and I realized no one else in this place was still on my side, and you…you never were!"

Fin chuckled. "Oh, please, come down off of that high horse, Olivia. You didn't have anyone to whine to, and none of us wanted to deal with your 'holier than thou' shit, that's all." He shook his head. "Then you had to go and marry him, get yourself knocked up, make another mistake because of him. After that, you leave us, go over to the dark side." His nostrils flared. "I seen you, Benson. In court. The way you spin the evidence to pity the child, the way you claim you're doing what's best for them even though they lie, steal, kill. You forgot who you are."

Olivia gave him a hard shove, pushing him back and making him land in his chair again. "Wrong," she spat. "For the first time in my life, Fin, I know exactly who I am!"

There was silence, tension looming between the two former friends. A small squeak hit Olivia's ears and she turned to look at Nathan with motherly panic in her eyes, but finding him still peacefully sleeping, she glanced back at Fin, who was still staring at her.

"If you two are done," Cragen said, making the first real sounds in quite a while, "There's a scared boy in the back room who'd like to speak with his lawyer."

Olivia took a shallow, shaky breath as she turned to look at the man who she used to think of as a father. "Where's Munch?"

"On a call," Cragen said. "Why, what does that have to do with..."

"Who am I supposed to leave him with?" she interrupted, pointing at the baby carrier.

Cragen's shoulders dropped and his head turned. His face lit up and he moved slowly. "Is that...this is your son?"

"No, in addition to being a child advocate, I also babysit for extra cash," she spouted sarcastically. She moved toward him. "Yes, this is Nathan. Nathan Benson Stabler."

Cragen squinted. "You hyphenated..."

"No, Benson is his middle name. It was Elliot's idea," she said with a small laugh. "He was adamant."

"I can watch him," Cragen said, a pleading look in his eyes. "At least, until the daycare downstairs opens. An hour. That's all I ask. I promise I..."

She held up a hand, slapping the other one down on the brown and blue diaper bag beside the carrier and said, "Diapers, wipes, cream...there are two bottles of fresh milk in the insulated case in the bag." She eyed Cragen again, something predatory and protective in her expression. "Don't give me a reason to regret this."

Cragen let out the breath he was obviously holding, and he reached down to brush Nathan's soft hair backward, gently caressing his little face. "In spite of everything, Olivia," he whispered, "I was always on your side. Whatever I did, it was to protect you."

She scoffed. "You didn't stop it, though, didn't even try to fix it or make someone pay for it all. There were no consequences for anyone else, you just..." she stopped. "I have a kid to talk to," she mumbled, turning around and heading into the interrogation room.

Cragen watched her go with genuine hurt in his eyes, but his smile returned when he looked back down at the baby boy, who had just blinked open his little eyes. "Oh, well, hello there," he cooed, unclipping the buckles and lifting the tiny bundle out of the carrier. "My God, you have your daddy's eyes."

Nathan blinked again and made a squeaky noise, his little hands searched for something to grab onto and his little head lobbed forward onto Cragen's shoulder. "I'm your grandpa," Cragen whispered, rubbing the boy's head slowly, softly. "Well, I...hope."

"Depends."

Cragen turned, his eyes now nervous seeing the owner of that low voice. "On what?"

Elliot took two steps into the room. "On what happens now," he said. He looked over to Nick, who was staring at him. "What?"

"Morning, Chief," Nick offered, smiling. "Just, uh, wasn't expecting you this early. We're not...um...I know I don't have my jacket on and policy..."

"Really?" Elliot interrupted. "Ask anyone in this room how often I showed up to work in a sweatshirt. Relax. I'm not here to scrutinize you." He looked back at Cragen. "I'm here to scrutinize someone else." He smiled briefly at how comfortable his son looked in Cragen's arms. "Can we talk?"

Cragen made a move to hand Nathan to Elliot, but was waved off, and he smiled as he cradled the baby closer to him, relieved. "My office," he said.

Elliot followed Cragen, but his eyes found Fin's. The glare that passed between the two was ferocious, cold. Years of aggression and pent-up, unuttered anger swelled behind their eyes, and Elliot just smirked at him. "Wait," he growled, a threat and a promise.

Fin watched the door to Cragen's office close, a little more afraid of what would come out and what he'd have to face now that Elliot had the final say. "Shit," he spat, getting out of his chair. He grabbed his coat and keys, and he looked at Nick. "I gotta go down to see a guy at Riker's. I'll be back. If anyone needs me, call my cell."

Nick nodded, then plopped in his chair. He took a look around, noticed how alone he was, and pressed his lips together as he picked up his phone. He dialed fast, afraid he'd lose his nerve, but he had to prove to himself, and to everyone else, where his loyalties lay.

"Sergeant Tucker, please," he said into the phone, and he focused his gaze on the door to the back room, a smile coming to his lips. "Hello, Sarge. It's, uh, Nick Amaro, Special...oh, yeah, I know you know, but...listen, I have something to tell you, something important, and I don't have a lot of time, so if...wait, come down here? No, I..." he heard the click and his eyes widened.

He was fucked.

**A/N: Munch spends some time with baby Nathan; Cragen, Tucker, and Elliot have a nice little chat; Nick tells someone a secret; Olivia runs into another old friend, with emotional results. Elliot gets a moment alone with his wife, and what Fin did finally comes out. Next.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: A lead**

Tucker walked through the doors with accusing eyes, looking around suspiciously at everyone in the squad room until he found Amaro. "Okay," he said, sitting down at the empty chair at Olivia's old desk. "What do you have to tell me?"

Nick blinked, watching Tucker toy with the blanket draped over the edge of the baby carrier. "Well, um, I mean...I know you're probably gonna hear this sooner or later because Chief Stabler is..."

"Here?" Tucker questioned. He looked at the carrier, then he smiled. "That means Nathan is here." He chuckled and made a comment about the baby looking like a short, pudgy Elliot, then looked back at Amaro. "Sorry, what?"

Nick rolled his eyes, cleared his throat, and said, "I've been doing a little digging. The rumors flying around this place since Benson left are...well, let's just say they made a lot of sense to me, so I went back through a load of paperwork and..."

"You did what?" Tucker asked, interrupting. "Who gave you the authority to do that?"

"Captain Cragen, actually," Nick said, unlocking his bottom left drawer and pulling out a file. "I found this...it's from...a long time ago, and it's all copies so, I think..."

Tucker nearly ripped the file out of Amaro's hand and flipped it open in his own. "Okay..." he hummed, looking through the pages. "Where did you get this, exactly?"

"Fin's old files. From Narcotics." Nick raised an eyebrow at Tucker. "I don't think him transferring here was a coincidence."

Tucker shook his head in disbelief. "This is...or it used to be..."

"It's pretty detailed," Nick cut in. "Down to where and when she got her first tattoo. I didn't know she had one, let alone more than one. Didn't that guy...uh...White something...?"

"Yeah," Tucker nodded. "Exactly. Thanks for this," he said, tapping the file on the edge of Nick's desk. "I assume Stabler is in with Cragen?"

Nick nodded, then watched as Tucker pulled the blanket out of the carrier and headed for Cragen's door. He stared for a moment before turning his head toward the interrogation room, wondering how Olivia would feel when she found out the betrayal she was afraid of was very real.

Tucker didn't even knock, he simply opened the door and sat down. "Give," he demanded, looking at Cragen.

With a chortle, Cragen gently handed Nathan to Tucker, who wrapped his blanket around him and rested him in the crook of one arm. "You knew about this?" he asked, getting right to business and holding up the file Nick had given him.

"What is that?" Elliot asked, tilting his head.

"Oh, nothing," Tucker said. "Just a list of every place your wife went on a daily basis fourteen years ago, including her old apartment, your house...there are some pretty interesting pictures I'm sure you're glad didn't come out until after Kathy already left your sorry ass."

"What?" Elliot hissed, yanking the folder from him. He opened it and searched it fast, blinking, cursing under his breath. "Where did you get this?" he asked, gritting his teeth.

"Amaro," Tucker said with a nod. "Who says he found it in a box of Tutuola's old files downstairs." He nodded once at Elliot. "Looks like you were right."

Elliot scraped his teeth over his bottom lip and tossed the file down on Cragen's desk. "Fin wasn't even in this unit when that bastard started stalking her. He had it out for her from the beginning, and I need to know why."

Cragen picked up the folder and shrugged. "If I had known...at all...he never would have...Elliot, please, you have to believe I didn't know anything about this back then. When Olivia left, I...I had a lot of time to think, and things started adding up when..."

There was a knock on the door, the three men all turned to face it. "Come in," Cragen shouted, and the door opened with a whoosh. "A little birdie told me that my nephew was in the building."

"Hey, John!" Elliot laughed, genuinely smiling at someone for the first time since walking back into the squad room.

Tucker took a last look at Nathan, tapped his little nose, then handed him over to Munch. "We're playing pass the baby," he said.

"I figured," Munch said with a laugh. "Hey, little Stabler! You hungry?"

Elliot raised a finger. "Bottles are in the..."

"I know," Munch interrupted. "Something tells me he also needs a new diaper." He made a face and looked at Nathan. "You waited for Uncle Munch, didn't ya, pal?"

Nathan let out a squeak and gave Munch a big grin, and with another laugh, Munch took the sweet boy out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Tucker cleared his throat, bringing the mood back down to its serious tone, and he looked at Cragen. "You know what this means, don't you?"

Cragen nodded. "More of a reason for Elliot to do what he was going to do anyway."

Tucker folded his arms. "Now, he has my full support. Every case file, every report, and...I guess this means I need to apologize to Benson. Stabler. Olivia."

Elliot furrowed his brow. "For what?"

"Brady," Tucker said with a pout. "I was so ready to lay her on a hot grill for that one, pushed aside everything she said, every doubt I had, and..."

"You did your job," Elliot said, cutting him off. "You already said you were..."

"Elliot," Tucker held up a hand. "I should have caught this before. That never should have happened, and I should have been more determined to protect my detectives than sacrifice them. I was out of line, and I need to own up to that." He dropped his arms to his sides as he stood. "And I need to make it right." He took a step backward and turned toward the door, but turned back again. "You know...seeing that file...those pictures...I know why mortgaged your house to bail her out."

Elliot narrowed his eyes and smirked at Tucker. "I would have done it anyway. Regardless of our...history. She means..."

"I know what she means to you, Elliot," Tucker nodded. "I never said it was wrong, did I? Only that I understand now." He nodded at Elliot, then at Cragen, then walked out of the office.

Elliot turned back to Cragen and gave him a half-sympathetic look. "I'm sorry about this, you know that?"

Cragen sighed as he pulled a silver key off of his keychain and handed it to Elliot. "No," he said. "You're not."

* * *

"Well," Olivia sighed, carrying Nathan into the living room, "That was pure hell, how was your day?"

Elliot laughed and shook his head. "Baby, you know my days are always somewhere between excruciating and abominable." He strode up behind her and kissed the back of her head. "Ed wants to know what we're feeding him."

"Hey," Olivia chuckled, lifting the sleeping baby out of the carrier and resting him over her shoulder, "I blame you for that. You were a big baby, too. So was Dickie."

"Eli...he was small," Elliot mused, raising an eyebrow.

Olivia raised both eyebrows. "Eli was early and almost died!" she spat at him shaking her head. "Just admit you're part giant and we can move on."

Elliot rolled his eyes as he followed Olivia into the nursery. He watched her with soft eyes as she laid the boy in his crib and bundled him up. "Honey?"

She snapped her head up to look at him, her hands still clutching the blue blanket.

He smiled at her, grabbed both of her hands away from the soft, blue wool, and pulled her close to him. "Aside from the case, having to go back there..." he pulled her out of the nursery and backed himself into their bedroom across the hall.

Olivia smiled back. "I spent a lot of time cuddling with my son, my incredibly handsome husband tried to play hero, and for once i made it home without having to change my shirt or my pants three times. It's been a pretty good day."

He drew his hands up her arms, then back down, and held her gaze. "It's been a pretty good year." He kissed her softly, looped an arm around her, and pulled her closer.

"What are you doing?" she mumbled against his kiss.

He laughed as he pecked her lips, chin, then her neck. "I'm trying to seduce my wife," he said, giving the thin skin in the bend of her neck a light nip. "Is it working?"

"Oh, yeah," she moaned softly. She felt him working his hands into the waistband of her pants, pushing down, and she pulled his shirt open quickly and sunk her teeth into his shoulder.

"Damn, baby," he grunted, tugging on the fabric of her shirt. He grabbed her tightly around the waist, spun her around, and gave her a playfully hard shove onto the bed. When she laughed, his face lit up. He pulled his shirt off completely, then worked his pants open and down.

He moved over her slowly, kicking off his pants, then kissed her bare stomach slowly, softly. "So beautiful," he murmured, dipping his tongue into her navel. He rested a hand on her abdomen when she bucked up in response, and he shook his head at her. "Easy, baby," he teased.

She took a shaky breath and let her head drop back as she felt him sliding her panties down her legs. He unhooked her front-clasp bra and let it fall away, then wrapped his lips around one rosy nipple, making her eyes pop open and forcing a moan to escape her opened lips.

"El," she whispered, one hand working itself into his hair, scratching at his scalp and holding him where he was.

He grinned as he lightly pulled on her nipple with his teeth, looking at her, a gleam in his eyes. He kissed his way up her neck, then crashed his mouth into hers as he looped his hands behind her legs.

She made it easy for him to hike them up and locked them behind his back, then cupped his face with her hands. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you, too," he whispered back to her, then kissed her hard and gave a rough thrust of his hips, catching her moan in his mouth and grunting into hers.

The kiss deepened and slowed, his hips moved in time with his heartbeat, and he let his mind calm and quiet, being in the moment with Olivia.

Her nails dug into his back, scraped down and up and back again, and she held onto him tightly as he moved into and out of her, bringing her close to the edge then pushing her back over and over again.

He groaned and trembled, holding on until he felt her clenching, tightening. When she began to shake beneath him he bit and tugged her bottom lip. "Let go," he breathed against her lips.

Her eyes fluttered, her back arched, her nails dug deeper into his skin, her heart pounded and she kissed him feverishly, whimpering into his mouth.

He grunted, then, following her lead, letting it all take over. He kept kissing her as he thrust harder, slower, shooting into her, and when he stopped moving, the kiss eased, slowed, and lightened.

Spent, they nuzzled, light kisses, soft touches, small laughs. A rare moment of peaceful privacy that they longed for, ached for. He kissed her again and rolled to his side, pulling her close, and let his eyes drift shut as he buried himself in her neck.

Just as they let their easy smiles spread across their faces in bliss, though, Nathan began to wail and Elliot's phone bleeped and chirped.

"We knew," he whined.

Olivia worked out of his hold and kissed him one more time. "It never lasts," she said, shaking her head. She grabbed her robe off of the chair beside the bed, wrapped herself up, and headed into the nursery as Elliot fumbled for his phone in the pocket of his long-forgotten pants.

"Stabler," he spat. "What do you want?"" He listened, then he thought, then he agreed. "Yeah, fifteen minutes." He snapped his phone shut, and he looked Heavenward. he closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he got redressed, letting his heartbeat steady. Finally, he'd be getting real answers, he would finally take down a long-hidden enemy, and he was ready to hand out consequences.

**A/N: Olivia runs into another old friend, in the courtroom; Elliot and Fin have a chat; And a few old not-so-friendly faces show up.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: A meeting**

"Well," a grey-haired man said, holding his hand out to Olivia. "I'm glad we settled this, counselor. Going after credibility. Well played."

Olivia smiled, shaking the man's hand. "I appreciate a lawyer who isn't a sore loser," she said.

The man narrowed his eyes. "That's what appeals are for, are they not?" He winked and turned, then walked away.

Olivia rolled her eyes and shook her head, then started off in her own direction. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and just as she was about to dial, she heard someone call her name. She turned sharply, then frowned.

"What are you doing here?" Alex Cabot, a former colleague and friend, asked with a wide grin.

Not smiling, Olivia answered. "Delivering pizza." She blinked once. "What do you think?"

Alex cleared her throat. "Uh, well...it's been a...a while, huh?"

"Over a year," Olivia mumbled, then looked down at her watch. "And it's still too soon, so if you'll excuse me, I have to..."

"Oh, come on," Alex interrupted. "You can't ignore me forever, Olivia, I called, I e-mailed," she listed.

Olivia scoffed. "And I didn't call or write back," she narrowed her eyes and folded her arms. "I think I was doing a pretty good job of ignoring you."

Alex sighed. "Just...hear me out, please? I think we owe each other a few apologies."

"You knew," Olivia shrugged. "You knew everything, and instead of backing me up, you not only kept it all to yourself, but you actually called me paranoid." She pointed a finger at Alex. "When you stab someone in the back like that, you can't expect them to brush it off. I'm not apologizing for calling you out on your mistakes, you fucked up on cases, you got what you deserved."

Alex closed her eyes. "I know, okay? I know. I...I can't change what I did, but I can at least try to make it up to you. You said you didn't have any proof that it was Fin who gave Brady what he needed to frame you."

"If I had proof, he'd be behind bars, not a desk," Olivia spat.

"Meet me in my office at nine," Alex said, her eyes now pleading. "Bring Elliot if you don't trust me. I'll give you all the proof you need."

Olivia bit the inside of her cheek, looked at Alex, and nodded once. "I'm gonna be late for another meeting," she muttered quickly before turning away again and walking out of the courthouse.

Alex watched her go for a long moment, then sighed when she realized Olivia wouldn't be looking back.

* * *

Elliot drummed his fingers along the side of the metal desk. He looked across at his former captain and shook his head. "Last night," he said.

Cragen sighed. "And you didn't think to call me? I would have gone with you!" He wiped his brow and coughed a bit. "When Richard White asks to see you, Elliot, you bring back up! The man has had it in for the two of you for years. What did he tell you?"

Elliot screwed his eyes shit for a second, then opened them, his glare dark and angry. "His exact words," he said through gritted teeth, "Were that he was thankful someone with a badge understood his obsession back then, and that he hasn't forgotten anything about her." He lifted his hand and balled it into a fist, cracking his knuckles. "He wasn't too thrilled to find out I wasn't her partner anymore, that I was her husband. He went completely...white." He scoffed and tilted his head. "You let him get even closer."

Cragen scratched his head, his eyebrows knit together. "Elliot, I swear to you, if I had known at the time..."

"But when you found out?" he barked, intruding. "You still didn't do anything, you didn't put him up in front of the board, you didn't go out and get statements, you just put Liv on a desk!" His nostrils flared and his jaw tightened. "You took away what was left...her whole reason for staying in this unit."

"She's strong, Elliot," Cragen argued. "I thought she'd figure out how to get him herself, but when she told me she was pregnant, I couldn't take a chance of that confrontation ever happening, and I didn't want to lose her, so..."

"You lost her the minute you told her you couldn't do anything about this," Elliot broke him off. He stood up, looked down at Cragen, and said, "I need to ask you to step out on this one. Nothing personal."

Cragen laughed. "Oh, bullshit, Elliot," he said, pulling his badge off of his hip as he rose out of his seat. "This is the most personal case you're ever gonna work." He slapped his badge into Elliot's palm. "And I have a feeling you're gonna need the only partner you ever really worked with by your side when you do it."

From the doorway, a voice said, "Damn right."

Cragen's head snapped up, and a bittersweet smile spread across his face. "Look at you," he said with a slight tone of pride and admiration.

Olivia looked down at her hip, her old badge shining bright, perched beside a holstered gun. "Well, ya know what they say, you want something done right you have to do it yourself." She looked at Elliot. "Alex stopped me at the courthouse, said she has something we need to see."

Cragen shoved his hands into his pockets and tilted his head. "Who reinstated you?"

"Elliot," she answered with a confused look on her face. "And Tucker. It was done completely by the book, and it's only temporary." She smirked. "I'll still take your vic's case, I'm not abandoning him. See, Don, when I promise someone I'll take care of them, it's a promise I keep."

"That sounded pointed," Cragen said, sighing. "I guess I'll...be going, then. Please, keep me in the loop? If I can help, at all, just..."

"You need to sit this one out," Elliot told him. "You played both sides of the fence, you're a liability here."

Cragen nodded, then stepped out of his office and into the bullpen. "I've been asked to hand the reins over to Chief Stabler, temporarily, for a...uh...internal case." He looked at Munch, then Amaro, then Rollins, but avoided Fin's wary eyes. "Listen to him, don't give him any grief, and if he gives you an order, you follow it."

"You got it, Cap," Munch said, nodding.

Fin, though, looked more angry than confused. "What the hell is goin' on?"

Olivia stepped out of the office, smiling when his eyes widened. "Just a little cold case we have to take care of," she said, "And Cragen is too involved in it now." She tilted her head and looked at Rollins. "Ya miss me?"

Rollins rolled her eyes. "Like a migraine," she said, dropping disheartened into her chair. "When will you be back?" she asked, looking over at Cragen. "How long is this gonna take?"

Cragen took a deep breath. "That depends on them," he said, "And all of you. Whatever they need, give them." He nodded and looked at Elliot, an apology behind his eyes, and he walked out of the squad room with a smirk on his face.

"You," Elliot said, pointing at Fin, "Where'd you run off to yesterday?"

"Had to meet a friend," Fin said coldly. "Not that it's any of your business."

Elliot grinned. "Actually, it is," he said. "And I think your 'friend' threw you under the bus last night. But hey," he siled. "No hard feelings."

Fin tensed, his eyes widened a bit more, and he couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't make him seem guilty.

Elliot shook his head and pushed up his sleeves, then looked at Olivia. "You ready?"

"Always," she said.

Amaro shook his head. "Hold on, where are you going?"

"Gotta see a man about an ass," Olivia said, grabbing her jacket.

"You mean horse?" Rollins questioned.

Olivia looked her dead in the eyes. "No," she said coolly.

Elliot looked at Munch. "Relax," he said. "I'm not leaving you unsupervised. Tucker's on his way in, with a few, uh, friends."

Munch's head tilted to the left and he crossed his arms. "What's going on?"

Elliot met his eyes, and wordlessly, he conveyed everything. He shot a hesitant glance toward Fin, then looked again at Munch and nodded.

Munch nodded back, understanding, and as Olivia and Elliot left, he watched Tucker walk in, with Trevor Langan and Casey Novak right behind him.

"All right," Fin huffed, "What the hell is goin' on here? Langan? You got no business bein'..."

"Actually," Langan said with a smug grin, "I do."

Tucker cleared his throat. "Langan was the defense in a case we're...reexamining. If you need me, I'll be in Cragen's office. Knock first." He all but sneered at the group of detectives before heading into the small room and slamming the door behind him.

"What the hell is goin' on here?" Fin asked once more, looking from Amaro to Munch.

Munch smiled. "Something that should have happened a long time ago," he said, his glasses low on his the tip of his nose. "Sweet revenge."

**A/N: What does Alex give Olivia? What information did White give to Elliot? And a confrontation with Fin. Next.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: It takes a lot of courage to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends – Albus Dumbledore**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and all related characters. TStabler owns the following story.**

"How long have we been in here?" Olivia asked, picking up a snow globe off of Alex's desk and shaking it hard.

Elliot snatched it from her, scoffed, and put it back down. "Ten minutes, will you relax?"

"Oh, hey, when you find out someone you thought of as family threw you to the wolves every chance he got, I'll tell you to relax," she said back to him. She took a deep breath, rolled her neck, and said, "I have such a headache."

He smirked. "I can fix that for ya," he said snidely.

"Not in Cabot's office," she grimaced at him.

He winced. "You used her last name," he said, clicking his tongue. "Ouch." He wrapped an arm around her, kissed her temple, and said, "If she's really trying here, you think you'd…"

"Hitler and Moses had a better shot at being friends," she said, interrupting him. "Don't even finish that thought."

He opened his mouth to speak, but the door opened behind him. "Thanks for coming," Alex said, sighing, shutting the door behind her again. She walked over to her desk, opened a drawer, and pulled out an envelope. "You don't have this," she said. "If someone finds out you have it, you didn't get it from me."

Elliot held out his hand. "And this would be…"

Alex raised an eyebrow as she slapped the long white package into his open palm. "The reason you mortgaged your house."

He chuckled. "That would be the woman sitting next to me," he said, lifting the tie-flap. "But I get your point." He shoved two fingers into the envelope and grabbed the folded papers, slid them out, unfurled them, and gasped. "You have got to be kidding me."

"I told you," Alex said, shrugging, "I had something you needed to see."

"What is it?" Olivia asked, sitting up straighter and trying to crane her neck toward Elliot.

Elliot looked at her, still shocked and slightly hurt, then handed her the papers. "It's how Brady really got the rest of your DNA. How he knew what to do to that fork."

Olivia grabbed and read, then bit her lip. "Son of a bitch," she muttered. "Bastard printed out my run from Warner's computer? How did he even get…"

"Like you don't know?" Alex broke in. "Come on, Olivia. You've been sleeping with Stabler for how long? You know his passwords, his social security number, you even know the PIN for every credit and debit card he has, don't you?"

"I'm his wife," Olivia huffed.

"You knew it all years ago," Alex laughed.

Olivia sighed and dropped the papers into her lap. "Are you telling me Melinda gave him her password because they were involved?" she asked, her heart breaking even more.

"Or she printed it for him," Alex offered. "But, please, don't get mad at Warner. She trusted Fin, like we all did, and she documented exactly why he said he needed it, it's on the next page. She went by the book, he just…lied to her."

Elliot grabbed the papers back and flipped the front page over. "He told her…he told her he was trying to find your father?" He squinted. "Melinda knows we already found him. Well, we found out who he was, at any rate." He rubbed a hand over his face. "She thinks the first guy was…wrong?"

Olivia took the papers back once more, folded them, and put them back in the envelope. "I have to talk to her."

"We," Elliot said with narrow eyes. He stood up and looked at Alex. "Anything else?"

Alex swallowed hard, wondering how Elliot could have known. "Yes, actually." She opened the same desk drawer the envelope had been pulled from, wiped her sweating palms on her skirt, and lifted a small, silver key out of her organizer. "Locker, in the gym, don't ask."

"I'm not asking," Elliot said, taking the key from her.

Alex looked at Olivia, then at Elliot. "Next time you're in court with Judge Ridenour, give him a break, okay?"

"You got this from Ridenour?" Olivia asked, squinting. "He was the one who…"

"Why do you think he kept granting you more time?" Alex said, gnawing at her lip. "He knew where Fin kept…things."

Elliot chuckled, bitterly this time. "Of course," he said. "That's why so many cases got blown through so quickly. Fin was feeding the judge evidence."

Alex brushed her hair back. "I know this doesn't make up for me not saying anything sooner, but you have to understand, my job was…"

"More important than my life?" Olivia snapped, her nostrils flaring. "You think about that next time you wonder why you weren't at the wedding." She tugged on Elliot's sleeve. "We're done here."

"Looks like it," he said. He looked down at the key, turned it in his hand, and he let out a grunt. "Son of a bitch."

"What?" she asked, heading for the door.

Elliot stood still as he looked up. "Locker number's One-Twenty. My birthday."

Alex cleared her throat. "Yeah, uh, Fin's plan was to…not necessarily bring Olivia down, but…"

"Me," Elliot said with an understanding nod. "Thanks." He took the three steps to meet up with Olivia, then opened the office door and led her out. He was quietly fuming as they walked down the hallway, and he reached for her hand, gripping it tightly.

"You okay?" she asked, raising one brow.

He licked his lips and nodded. "I love you," he said. "If I had known about this, Liv, I…"

"You heard her, El," she said, shaking her head. "You were part of this. He was gonna let you take the fall for framing me, here." She tilted her head and added, "I love you, too, by the way."

"I know you do." He started to walk a little faster. "I've always known, but I never get tired of hearing you say it." He pulled on her arm, making her run to keep up with him.

"Where's the fire?" she asked, her breathing growing rapid. "Don't forget, I don't have to do this anymore, I'm a little out of practice."

He chuckled and raced with her to the elevator. "Warner, then the locker room," he said. "Then I corner Fin and get to the bottom of what the hell his problem is."

"Um, think twice before you do that," she said, stepping through the sliding doors.

He tilted his head. "Why?"

She grinned. "We can't take a third mortgage out on the house."

He laughed and swatted her in the shoulder lightly. "Don't have to," he said. "I've been doing this job long enough, I know how to do it without leaving any evidence."

"I have spousal privilege, right?" she asked, smiling.

"You do, yes," he nodded, punching the button for the ground floor. "Seriously, Liv, I don't know how not to take this personally. I can't look past any of this to see his side, I can't fathom there even being a logic behind any of this, so why am I…"

"El," she grabbed both of his shoulders and turned him to face her. "Baby, stop. You're gonna handle this the right way, no one is gonna question you because they know damn well you're not gonna risk fucking this up. That's why no one questioned you the first time, El. Why no one would, even for a single millisecond, believe you had anything to do with hurting me in any way."

"Damn right," he spat, moving forward and kissing her hard. He twisted his hands in her hair, pressed her against the wall of the elevator, and got lost in the kiss. It wasn't until the clearing throats of waiting people hit his ears, he'd even realized the elevator stopped. He pulled away from her and turned, smirked, and straightened out his tie.

Olivia licked her lips as she righted herself, then said a cocky-sounding, "Excuse me," as she pushed by people to step out of the elevator. She looked over at Elliot, right beside her, and said, "I think I forgot my own name for a moment, there."

"Good," he said nonchalantly. "I like having that effect on you." He held the door to the morgue open for her and leaned close to her as she passed him. "For the record," he whispered, "You do the same damn thing to me."

She smiled at him, then shook her head and rounded the corner into an exam room. "What's up, Doc?" she asked.

Melinda Warner turned around, rolling her eyes. "Like I haven't heard that one be- oh, holy shit! Olivia? I didn't know you were back!"

"I'm not back," she said, holding up both hands. "Just some unfinished business."

Melinda narrowed her eyes. "Something the rookies can't handle?"

Elliot cleared his throat. "This one is bigger than them," he said. "The, uh, current unit can't work this case. It involves one of them."

"Okay," Warner sang, crossing her arms. "So what can I do for you?"

Olivia pulled the envelope out of her pocket. "You gave Fin access to my confidential file, why?"

"How did you…why did…" Warner babbled. She bit her lip and eyed Olivia nervously. "I was only trying to help, I never meant to offend you or betray any kind of trust, I just…"

"Slow down," Elliot said, easing her with an open palm. "Why did he want it? The access log says familial DNA comparison, but we already found Liv's brother and father."

Melinda looked confused. "He didn't tell you? He told me you knew, Elliot, that it was your idea!"

"What was?" Elliot asked, his voice low, cool, as if he was interrogating her.

"Comparing her DNA to another cold rape case," Warner said, walking over to a filing cabinet. "He said the MO was similar to Serena's, the time-frame fit, he said you thought maybe it was just a coincidence that you got a hit on…"

"Mel," Elliot said, his toner softer as he interrupted her. "If I ever had any concerns about Liv, you know I came to you myself."

Melinda closed her eyes and exhaled harshly as she handed Elliot a freshly pulled file. "He told me you didn't want her to know," she shrugged. "Anything to help Liv, I mean, I trust Fin as much as I trust…" she paused. "Oh, my God. He used this for something else?"

Elliot nodded as he flipped through the file. "Mel, this…this cold case? Doesn't exist." He flopped the folder closed and handed it to Olivia. "It says on the last page it's an example case-file, for training purposes only."

Olivia looked at Melinda and said, "You gave him what he needed to bust me for Clyde VanDyne's murder." She took a deep breath. "Fin gave a copy of this to Brady Harrison."

"Oh, Olivia, I..I never…I thought that…"

"I know, Doc," Olivia said with a sad smile. "He lied to you, too. You trusted him as much I did. This fucking sucks, but I know your heart was in the right place."

"I would never hurt you," Melinda said firmly. "You saved my life, once upon a time. I thought…doing this, I thought I'd be returning the favor. And look, I'm the reason you were in trouble to begin with," she choked out. "I'm so…"

"Don't." Olivia rested a hand on Melinda's shoulder. "I know. No need to apologize."

Melinda stiffened, took a shaky breath, and looked at Elliot. "What are you still doing here?" she asked sternly. "Go get the son of a bitch."

Elliot laughed and nodded, then said, "We're on it, Doc." He shook Melinda's hand and looped his other arm around Olivia's back. He nudged her toward the door, and this time, instead of veering left toward the elevator they turned right, heading out the back door onto the city street. "Back to the One-Six," he sighed.

She smirked. "Ya know, we have a lot of memories in that locker room."

He nodded. "Uh-huh," he agreed. "Torn shirts, busted knuckles…"

"Ripped, lace underwear," she added. "A bra that was thrown behind the lockers and never recovered."

He laughed. "You looked better without it," he shrugged.

"I had to wear that sweatshirt for the rest of the night!" she cracked. "I'm lucky that thing is big on me."

He chuckled again, then slid his hand down her arm and linked his fingers with hers. They shared sweet words and soft laughs as they walked the eight blocks back to the station, and once they reached the steps they both took one last, long look at each other. He leaned over and kissed her lips softly. "I love you."

"Back at ya, Stabler," she returned with a wink.

He pulled the door open, again he held it allowing her to go first, and stayed in step with her as their feet clicked along the tiles. Their easy, relaxed smiles faded into grimaces of determination as they drew closer to the locker room, and when Elliot opened the door, he stopped short.

"What are you…" and then she saw what gave him pause.

Elliot growled, a sound from low in his throat Olivia had never heard before. "Looking for something, Tutuola?"

Fin, who was trying his damndest to break open the lock on box one-twenty, froze. He lowered his hands, chuckled in spite of his situation, and turned slowly. "Probably the same thing you came to get, Stabler."

**A/N: What's in the locker? What happens now?**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: "When you're hurt, you survive. When your family is hurt, you destroy." - Anonymous****  
**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and all related characters. TStabler owns the following story**

Elliot fumed and lunged toward Fin. "You son of a..."

"El," Olivia said, a warning in her tone. She looked at Fin. "Just tell me why."

Fin grinned, then cleared his throat and punched the locker, popping it open. "The plan...was to get you in deep shit, then point the finger at Stabler. Was gonna blame unrequited love or some shit." He narrowed his eyes. "Then I find out you two been fuckin' for years and it wouldn't fly. I thought maybe I could convince a judge he changed his mind, wanted to work things out with his wife, needed you out of the way. Then he went and mortgaged his damn house for you, and..."

"Put a kink in your plan?" Elliot broke in. He took a few steps closer, cracking his knuckles. "Why me? You didn't even know me; you were planted in this department for..."

"A reason, yeah," Fin nodded. "Who does the hiring and firing around here? Who had a good reason to need you seen as dirty cop, take your badge, ruin you?" He chuckled and looked at Olivia. "And who wouldn't mind getting you out of the way as collateral damage?"

Elliot gave Fin a hard shove, pushing him against the lockers and twisting his collar. "Stop with the fucking riddles! I don't need to know that, I got a thousand arrows pointing all the blame at you, mother fucker, so I really don't need your reasons." He gave Fin another hard slam into the locker, taking pleasure in the way his head thudded against the cold metal. "You're gonna tell them everything, asshole. This ends now!"

"Stop it!" Olivia barked. "Nothing ends without proof, right?"

Elliot turned his head to look at her, his eyes wide. "What more proof do you need? He just fucking confessed!"

Olivia held an open palm toward the bent and mangled locker next to the two huffing men. "It's empty."

Both Elliot and Fin dropped their arms and looked at the locker, then at each other, then at Olivia.

Elliot swallowed hard, took a step back, and glared at Fin. "Upstairs, now," he commanded.

"Stop bossin' me around!" Fin snapped, swatting Elliot's hand off his shoulder.

"I'm your boss," Elliot smirked. Then he took a breath, letting it out through clenched teeth. "I think now would be a good time to tell me who put you up to this."

Fin licked his lips and suddenly looked more nervous, more unsure of himself. "Yeah," he nodded. "Cause now they're after me."

~~~~~~~~~~

"It's late," Olivia said, rubbing her hands along Elliot's broad shoulders.

He nodded, flipping a page in the yellow notepad he held in his hands. "I'm not stopping, Liv," he said. "Not till this is done. Over."

Olivia dropped her hands from the back of his neck, sighed, and padded barefoot over to the baby carrier on the couch. She sat beside it, her left hand reaching into the seat and laying softly on Nathan's tiny chest. She smiled as she felt it rise and fall, and she whispered, "Your daddy is stubborn, but brave. Yes he is," she cooed.

He laughed and looked at her, the notebook dropping into his lap. "Baby, I'm not stubborn. I'm determined." His tone changed and the vein in his forehead pulsed a bit too violently. "No one hurts you." His eyes flashed with seriousness and anger. "No one fucks with my family."

She rose and moved to him, cupping his face in both hands. "Calm down. I'm fine, we're fine, every one knows I didn't do anything wrong, they all know you had nothing to..."

"Damn it, Liv," he hissed, standing, cupping her face in return and staring into her eyes. "That's not the point!" He took a breath and lowered his voice, remembering his sleeping son. "From day one with you, from the minute you walked into my life, I knew if anyone ever hurt you, ever even tried, I'd make them pay for it." His nostrils flared and he shook his head, then dropped his forehead against hers.

"I feel the same way about you," she whispered to him, "But please don't make yourself sick over..."

"Fin...I just..." He closed his eyes and kissed her softly. "What he was to you, what he did..." He kissed her again, this time letting his lips linger on hers a bit longer. "That's the worst kind of hurt, and the most deserving of a special place in Hell. I plan to send him there myself."

She smiled sadly at him and let her thumbs caress his cheeks as she pulled him closer to her for another deep kiss. "Let's go home," she said. "Fin isn't going anywhere; this will all still be here tomorrow. You need to sleep..."

He stopped her with yet another kiss, backing her up toward the wall. "I know what I need," he whispered, his hands trailing lower on her body, his lips peppering small pecks along her jawline and her neck. "It certainly isn't sleep."

She moaned low and deep, offering a weak protest. "The baby..."

"Is asleep, on the other side of the room," he said, pulling at the buttons on her pants. "And Lord knows you can be quiet when you have to be." He kissed her again and let his lips kiss their way to her ear. He nibbled on her earlobe, letting his hot breath send shivers along her spine. "I need to be inside you."

His words nearly made her come undone on the spot, she melted into his arms, giving in, needing him just as much, needing the reassurance that they were coming out of this awful situation unscathed, together. "El, please, I..."

A loud knock on the door broke them apart fast. "Fuck," Elliot griped, more frustrated than he could ever remember being. "What?" he fumed, scraping a hand down his face and trying to adjust himself and his pants to a less obvious level of embarrassing.

Olivia caught her breath as she watched him storm over to the door and swing it open hard, his chest heaving, and it did nothing to squelch her need and ache for him.

Elliot glared at Munch, his angry vein visibly throbbing. "Unless someone is dead or dying, go..."

"They are," Munch said, his eyes downcast. "Maybe. If they don't..."

"What?" Olivia butted in, rushing to Elliot's side. "Who? What happened?"

Munch locked his eyes on Elliot's. "Judge Ridenour." He pushed his glasses up further on his nose. "His place was ransacked, his wife was locked in a closet the whole time, she heard everything."

"Is he okay?" Elliot asked, genuinely concerned, his anger and frustration fading.

Munch shrugged. "Rollins and Amaro went to the hospital with him, we haven't heard anything yet."

Elliot tilted his head. "Okay, I know why I needed to know...obviously it's connected to this bullshit with Fin, but why are Amaro and Rollins down there?"

"It's not an SVU case," Olivia said, narrow-eyed. "Oh, God, it's not, is it? He wasn't..."

"No," Munch interrupted, saving her from finishing the horrifying thought. "But, uh, after you brought Fin up here and gave him the third degree, they asked what was going on. Tucker filled them in, and they're pissed." He looked at Olivia. "Rollins even said if she ever gets her hands on Fin, he'd have Hell to pay," he told her. "Guess all is forgiven on her end."

Olivia scoffed. "Not on mine, but I appreciate it," she said, nodding once.

Munch looked from her back to Elliot. "I'm guessing he had whatever was in that locker, but we didn't find a damn thing that looked consequential." He held up a clear plastic bag. "He had this in his back pocket. Attacker didn't search him, missed it."

Elliot grabbed the bag, and his face contorted in a mix of confusion and pain.

"What is it?" Olivia asked, wrapping both arms around Elliot to keep herself calm.

He looked at her, then down at the bag, then back to her. "Dickie's graduation ring."

"Why would Ridenour have that?" Olivia asked, scared.

Elliot went white and started to shake. "I have no fucking idea," he spat, grabbing his jacket off the rack. "But I'm gonna find out."

**A/N: uh-oh!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I guess I misjudged the love between a father and his son – Elton John, The Last Song**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and all related characters. TStabler owns the following story.**

"I'm not leaving this room until you answer me," Elliot glared at the teenager in front of him.

Dickie rolled his eyes and scoffed. "You're kidding, right?" He shot up off the bed and gave Olivia a slight sneer. "You don't know?"

"Honey, all we know is a judge had this, your ring," Olivia said, her voice slightly cracking. "We need to know why."

"Christ, for a couple of detectives you're fucking thick," Dickie spat, moving fast toward his dresser drawer.

Elliot's nostrils flared, his veins popped. "Language!" he shouted.

Dickie pulled open a drawer and grabbed a white envelope. "I'm an adult, Dad," he laughed. "You can't really tell me what I can and can't say anymore." He tossed the envelope to his father and raised an eyebrow, then crossed his arms and looked very much like a younger version of Elliot. "This is the dipshit that tried Katie, right? And Liv?"

Elliot nodded absently as he opened the envelope. His eyes scanned the one page letter, which had clearly been read over a hundred times. The paper was thin and crinkled, and nearly coming apart at its folds. "When did…how…" He looked up from the letter and looked at his son. "Why didn't you come to me?"

"He told me not to," Dickie answered, biting his lip. "It's right there in black and white, Dad! I mean, shit, the man threatened to send Liv up the fucking river for murder! What did you want me to do?"

"What else did you give him?" Elliot was hurt, angry, and feeling more betrayed than he had in a long while, since the man his son was named after turned out to be a monster. "Dickie, what did he…?

"Why do you think I didn't buy that car?" Dickie interrupted. "Why I didn't go on that trip with my friends?" He grew angry, the hurt and years of keeping this a secret bubbled to the surface. "Every month, he demanded I give him five hundred bucks, and if I didn't he'd reopen a case, Liv or Kat, or even one of yours. He'd somehow find new evidence or…shit, Dad, he was gonna make sure…"

Elliot stopped his son, silencing his words by pulling him into a tight hug and burying his head in his chest. "It's okay," he whispered, rocking with his grown son crying in his arms. "It's okay, he's not gonna hurt this family ever again, I swear."

Dickie shook his head hard and sobbed, choking on his words as he said, "When you're not there, it's my job, right? To protect the family? You couldn't this time, so I…I did." He tried to take a breath and straighten up, then looked over at Olivia. "I don't think he just gave back a thousand dollar ring," he said with a single nod. "What happened to him?"

"He was attacked," Olivia said, biting her lip. "Sweetheart, you didn't…"

"God, no," Dickie chuckled, wiping his eyes. "I wanted to, trust me. Nothing would have given me more satisfaction than bashing that man's head in, but…I would never."

Elliot nodded. "Yeah, kid," he said. "We know." He shot a glance over to his wife, and he took a slow deep breath. "Now, uh," he quirked his left eyebrow as he looked back at his son, "What else did you give him when you didn't have the cash?"

Dickie backed away from his father. "Grandpas money clip," his eyes shut in shame, "The ring I was gonna give Julie, the cufflinks you gave me to wear at your wedding. But, Dad, I had no choice! I wasn't gonna let him hurt Liv!"

"Okay, bud, no one is mad at you," Elliot rested a hand on his son's shoulder. "No one is hurting anyone anymore." He smirked. "Except maybe me, but I promise the people I hurt deserve so much more than I'm gonna give 'em."

Dickie chuckled as he wiped his eyes again, and he shook off the emotions coursing through him. He took another deep breath and said, "Dad, uh, it wasn't…it wasn't just the judge."

Olivia smiled sadly at her stepson. "We know," she said. "Honey, why…"

"I love you," Dickie shrugged, interrupting. "Dad loves you, and despite everything…we aren't a real family without you." He smiled. "Mom may not have known Dad mortgaged the house for you, but we did." He took a step closer to Olivia and offered another shy shrug. "We…we all told him to do whatever he had to do, that we'd understand, and that none of us wanted you in that shithole for any longer than…"

"Dickie!" Elliot yelled again. "Enough with the language!"

"This from the man whose first words were 'fucking shit,' really?" Dickie teased. "Chill, Dad."

Elliot laughed, looked from his son to his wife, then back to his son. "What ring that you were gonna give Julie?"

Dickie's eyes widened. "No, no, no more interrogating me, go get the real assholes!"

Elliot moved toward Olivia, closer to Dickie's bedroom door. "This isn't the end of this discussion," he said pointing a finger at Dickie. "We're talking about this when we get home. And your brother needs to be…"

"Fed, changed, rocked to sleep, I got it," Dickie spat, rolling his eyes. "I can't wait till Eli is old enough for diaper duty."

Olivia laughed before reaching out to wrap a hand around Dickie's head. She kissed his forehead and looked him in the eyes. "You're just like your father."

"I take that as a compliment," he said, smiling at his stepmother.

"I meant it as one," Olivia said, honestly. "I love you, you know that, don't you?"

"I've always known," Dickie said, smiling. "We all have, Liv." He kissed her cheek, then nodded at his father, and watched as the two left his room, hoping whatever they were going to fight would be a battle won.

The walk out of the house and to the car was silent, but comfortable. There was a sense of relief and ease as they walked to their black SUV, and he ran around the car to open the door for her. "M'lady," he said, bowing his head slightly and grinning at her.

"Oh, you're good at this," she laughed, getting into the car.

"What? Romancing you? You knew that already," he winked and shut the door, then ran back around to get into the driver's side. He slammed the door, started the car, and looked at her. "What did you mean?"

She buckled her seatbelt, watching him do the same, and said, "The calm before the storm." She licked her lips and sighed. "How you go from sweet and happy to the Incredible Hulk so quickly."

"See, Liv," he said, starting the drive back to the station. "It's simple. You keep me calm and happy, anyone who even thinks about hurting you…or thinks about _thinking about _hurting you, is gonna feel my wrath in ten different ways, get me?"

She leaned her head back, closed her eyes, and let the weight of the situation finally dawn on her. "This is exhausting," she mumbled. "How could he…Fin…I just…"

"Honey," Elliot interrupted her, "He isn't the guy we thought he was anymore. Maybe he never was at all. He came here with the intention, with the agenda, so you and I both just have to forget…"

"Maybe you can," she shot her head up. "Tell me how I'm supposed to just forget someone who I thought of as family."

He slowed to a stop at a red light, then looked at her. "By focusing on your real one." He cleared his throat. "You have a family, Liv. You have a husband, and kids, and now you know that we all fought to save your ass, our son gave up…a lot…sacrificed and spent…I can't even think of…"

"I know that, El," she snapped, her breaking point being realized, "I know! And he shouldn't have had to! He never should have been put in that position! Don't you get that?"

Driving again, he focused on the road as he talked to her. "You aren't actually blaming yourself, here, are you? Liv, the judge went after my kid, was using you and Kathleen as leverage to blackmail and control my son. This isn't your fault, okay? It's mine! And fuck I'm gonna fix it!"

"Elliot!" Olivia's eyes bulged and she tried to calm him down fast. "El, please watch where you're going."

"I'm the reason all of this happened," he fumed, slamming a fist on the dashboard. "I was the target, not you, Fin was going through you to get to me, the judge was taking bribes and using my family to…"

"Elliot!" she reached over and grabbed the wheel, swerving it hard and forcing Elliot to slam on the brakes, bringing the car to a screeching halt near the corner of a dark street.

She looked at him, at his heaving shoulders and flaring nostrils, his read eyes and his pulsing temples, and she unhooked her seatbelt as fast as she could.

He followed suit, grunting as he managed to get the offending band off of him and his lips crashed into hers with such force it knocked them both back against the passenger side of the car. He nipped and bit at her lips, her chin, her neck, as one hand forced its way into her pants and the other up the back of her shirt to hold onto her.

"Not your fault," she muttered against his kiss, moaning at the feeling of his hands against her flesh. "Baby," she whispered, her eyes rolling back, her fingers clawing down his back.

"Never gonna let anything happen to you," he promised in the midst of frenzied actions and hot, wet kisses. "I love you."

"Oh, God, El," she whimpered. It was half a response to his fingers twisting into her and half a cry and a prayer. "I love you."

He sunk his teeth into her neck, mumbling unintelligible words of love and devotion as he worked his fingers fast and hard, bringing her orgasm on fast and furiously. "Baby, oh, God, baby, please," he begged softly. "Need this. Cum for me."

She didn't even consciously obey him, the tension already so high and the need far too great, and she let her mouth fall open and her head drop back as she came, intense and full-bodied, her legs and hips twitching and bucking until his fingers slowed, then stopped.

He kissed her skin slowly as she caught her breath, coming down as fast as she'd been brought up. She lifted her head, a sated smile on her face, and she scraped her teeth along her lip and moaned long and low. "Shit, El," she panted. "I was right."

He raised an eyebrow, his own breathing labored and harsh.

She cupped his face and pulled hard, yanking him up to meet her, kissing him fiercely but slowly. She pulled away and looked into the blue eyes she always got lost in. "The calm before the storm."

Looking at him, kissing him again, in that moment, she didn't realize just how tremendous that storm would truly be.

**A/N: Ruh-roh, Raggy! (Bad Scooby Doo Impression)**


End file.
